A water plant gets wrapped around the propeller of a boat in Round Pond. This particular plant exhibits an unusual allele that gives it extra branches. The boat owner moves his boat to Big Lake without cleaning the plant off the propeller. The same species of water plant already exists in Big Lake, but none of the plants exhibit the "extra branches" allele. One year later, the frequency of the extra branches allele in Big Lake is much higher. This is an example of
A)genetic drift.
B)mutation.
C)natural selection.
D)gene flow.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

This scenario involves gene flow, which occurs when individuals or genetic material move from one population to another. In this case, the water plant with the unusual allele (extra branches) migrated from Round Pond to Big Lake via the boat's propeller, introducing the allele into the Big Lake population. Over time, the frequency of the allele increased in Big Lake because it was now present in the gene pool and could be passed on to offspring. This is not a case of genetic drift, mutation, or natural selection because the change in allele frequency is due to the movement of genetic material between populations, not random chance, a new mutation, or selective pressures in the environment.

A Water Plant Gets Wrapped Around the Propeller of a Boat